Child restraint laws???

Question

i need to know if my neice can ride in the back seat of the car without a car seat using only a lap belt. she is 7 and weighs 50lbs. im going insane trying to find an answer, plz help! thanx!

Answer 1

its different in each state, but I can give my opinion on what I would do if it were my child.  She would be in a 5 point harness until 65 lbs - then a booster to 80 lbs. You can go to youtube and look up car seat and booster seat crash tests and find out why if you need to. My daughter is 13 months and weights 20lbs and according to the law - i can forward face her now... but there is no way Im going to.  

She will stay rear facing in her 5 point harness until she is 33 lbs which is the limit of the seat.  Why?  because of internal decapitation.  This happens even to adults, but its more likely to happen to children because their heads are the heaviest part of them.  This is where the skull separates from the spinal cord.  

Sure her legs are going to get so long that it might look uncomfortable.. but having your legs drawn close to you is actually more comfortable than having them dangling with no support.

Answer 2

Here are all of the laws........................

http://www.childseatcenter.com/article10...

Answer 3

dont go insane....call cops/police.they give out the tickets and know..or try your state DMV..they usually have good sites...DMV Virginia gets me to mine